Terms of service

1. What these terms cover

They apply to the SEO services I offer: audits and competitor analysis, technical and on-page SEO, local SEO, and content and link building. The scope, timing and price of each job are set out in the written quote. If the quote and these terms say different things, the quote wins.

They also cover the use of the free tools on this site (section 14).

2. Quotes and how a contract is made

After your request, I email you a written quote. It covers what I’ll do, what you’ll receive, the timeline, the price and the payment terms.

A quote only becomes binding on both of us once you accept it in writing, either by replying by email or by returning it signed. A phone call or a form message isn’t enough. Once you accept, I email you a confirmation of the contract.

Unless stated otherwise, a quote is valid for 30 days from the date I send it.

3. Prices

The "from €…" prices on the site are indicative and give you a ballpark. The price that counts is the one in your written quote, based on your site and the actual work.

No VAT applied: Italian flat-rate scheme, Art. 1(54–89) Law 190/2014.

Any work outside the quote gets its own separate quote, and I only do it if you accept.

4. Payment

• One-off projects (for example an audit or a technical sprint): 50% when you accept the quote, the balance on delivery.
• Monthly services (for example local SEO or link building): invoiced monthly, in advance.
• How: bank transfer, within 15 days of the invoice date.

A quote can set different terms, and if it does, those apply. If a payment is late, I may pause the work until it’s settled, after letting you know. Business clients are charged late-payment interest under Italian Legislative Decree 231/2002.

5. What I need from you

To do the job properly I need:

• the access the service requires, such as Google Search Console, your site’s admin panel, your Google Business Profile or hosting. Where possible, create a dedicated user for me rather than sharing your password;
• accurate, complete information about your business, services and goals;
• reasonably prompt replies to questions and drafts;
• the rights to any text, images, logos and materials you give me. You confirm you’re allowed to use them and that using them doesn’t infringe anyone else’s rights.

If any of this arrives late, delivery dates move back accordingly.

6. No ranking guarantee

I don’t guarantee positions on Google or any other search engine, and I don’t guarantee any amount of traffic, enquiries or sales. Nobody can honestly do that.

Search engines are third-party services. They decide for themselves what to show and how, and they change their criteria without notice. What I do guarantee is the work described in the quote, done carefully and with sound methods. Results are measured over time, with no promises about position.

7. Methods I use and methods I don’t

I work within the guidelines search engines publish. In practice, I don’t use:

• bought link networks, PBNs or organised link swaps;
• cloaking, hidden text, doorway pages or deceptive redirects;
• mass-generated content or automated spam on forums, comments and directories;
• fake or paid reviews.

If a placement on a third-party site involves a fee to the publisher, I’ll tell you beforehand. In that case the link is marked as sponsored, as search engine rules require.

8. Deliverables and usage rights

Once you’ve paid for a service in full, you can freely use what I delivered for your business, with no time limit. That covers reports, analyses, copy, structured data, configurations and recommendations. For copy written for you, full payment also transfers the economic usage rights to you.

My method, templates, software and know-how stay mine, and I can keep using them for other clients. Any third-party images or materials included remain subject to their own licences, which I’ll point out to you.

9. Confidentiality

I treat the logins, data and business information I receive during the work as confidential. I use them only to deliver the service and share them with no one unless the law requires it. When the job ends, I delete the credentials you gave me, and I recommend you revoke my access.

I won’t name you or use the work I did for you as an example without your written permission.

Personal data is handled as described in the Privacy policy. If the work requires me to process your customers’ personal data on your behalf, we’ll put that in a separate agreement under Art. 28 GDPR.

10. Liability

I stand behind the work I do. My total liability for a service is limited to what you paid me for that service.

I’m not liable for:

• decisions and updates by search engines or other platforms, such as a profile suspension or an algorithm change;
• changes made to the site by you or others after my work;
• failures of hosting, plugins or third-party services I don’t manage.

These limits don’t apply in cases of wilful misconduct or gross negligence (dolo o colpa grave), or where the law doesn’t allow liability to be limited, including the rights the law gives consumers.

11. Monthly services: term and cancellation

Monthly services run for a minimum of 3 months, because in SEO anything shorter rarely produces something measurable. After the first 3 months the service continues month to month, and you can cancel at any time with 30 days’ notice by email.

If you’re a consumer, your right of withdrawal in section 12 still applies.

12. Right of withdrawal (consumers only)

If you’re a consumer and made the contract at a distance, for example by email, you can withdraw within 14 days of the contract being made. You don’t need to give a reason and there’s no penalty, under Arts. 52–59 of the Italian Consumer Code (Legislative Decree 206/2005).

How to withdraw. Send me a clear statement before the deadline, by email to info@spyseotools.com or by letter to the business address. You can use the form below, but you don’t have to.

Refund. I’ll refund what you paid within 14 days of receiving your notice, using the same payment method you used, unless you ask otherwise. The refund costs you nothing.

If you ask me to start straight away. I can start work before the 14 days are up only if you explicitly ask me to in writing.

• If you then withdraw, you owe me an amount proportionate to the work done up to the moment you tell me you’re withdrawing, measured against the total price (Art. 57(3) Consumer Code).
• If the service is fully performed within the 14 days, you lose the right of withdrawal (Art. 59(1)(a) Consumer Code). This applies only if you explicitly asked me to start and confirmed you understood that you would lose the right once the service is fully performed. I’ll ask for this confirmation in writing when you accept the quote.

Model withdrawal form

(Annex I, Part B, Italian Consumer Code. Complete and return this form only if you wish to withdraw from the contract.)

To: Spy SEO Tools, Piazza Eugenio Marchese 6, 16012 Sarissola (Busalla) GE, Italy · info@spyseotools.com I/We () hereby give notice that I/We () withdraw from my/our (*) contract for the provision of the following service:

Concluded on:

 

Name of consumer(s):

 

Address of consumer(s):

 

Signature of consumer(s) (only if this form is sent on paper):

 

Date:

 

(*) Delete as appropriate.

13. Disputes and governing law

These terms and any contracts under them are governed by Italian law.

If a dispute arises, a consumer client may turn to the ADR bodies provided for by the Italian Consumer Code or to the competent court.

• If you’re a consumer, the court of the place where you live or are domiciled has jurisdiction.
• If you’re a business or professional, the courts of Genoa (Foro di Genova) have exclusive jurisdiction.

Before any of that, though, write to me. Almost everything gets sorted by talking it through.

14. The free tools on this site

The tools in the Tools section are free, need no sign-up and run entirely in your browser. I provide them as they are. Results are indicative estimates, may contain inaccuracies and don’t replace a professional analysis. Using them doesn’t create any contract between us.

15. Changes

I may update these terms. Each job is governed by the version in force when you accept the quote.